Francisco Núñez Olivera

The world's oldest man, a Spaniard from a village near Badajoz, has died at the grand old age of 113. He had been a widower since 1988 and his two sons have died but he lives with his eldest daughter, María Antonia, 81, and near his other daughter Milagros, 78. He spent his last birthday when he turned 113 with Maria Antonia where he started the day with cake for breakfast and then read birthday cards sent to him from around the world. "He will be missed by everyone," said Antonio Carmona, the mayor of Bienvenida, the town where Marchena lived his whole life. His ID says he was born on September 13th 1904 but his daughter says he is actually three months younger and was born on December 13th. He was ten years old when the First World War broke out and in the 1920s he fought against the Berbers in Morocco during the Rif War between Spain and its North African neighbour. His daughter added a few more reasons as to why her father may have lived such a long life, including "a gentle routine in a quiet village, being his own boss, not arguing with the family and enjoying the good life – that revolved around the field, his house and the village bar." He also had a varied diet despite not having had his own teeth for four decades, she explained. His daily food consisted of milk and madeleines (a light sponge cake) for breakfast with an Actimel. Meat, fish or stew for lunch, yoghurt for an afternoon snack and special cereal with milk for dinner. While Francisco had the records to prove his age, they are not the originals – which were burned during the Spanish Civil War. Spaniards have one of the highest life expectancies in the world, which is often attributed to the Mediterranean diet and traditional slower pace of life. Spain is also home to Europe's oldest woman, Ana Vela Rubio, who celebrated her 116th birthday in October. The world's oldest human is currently Nabi Tajima of Japan who was born on Aug. 4, 1900 and is currently 117 years old.